<論説>ローマ元首政期小アジアにおける見世物と都市 : アフロディシアスの事例を中心として

Abstract

本稿は、元首政期ローマ帝国下の小アジアで増加した、競技祭としての見世物の分析を通して、当該期におけるギリシア都市の実態に迫る。とりわけ、都市アフロディシアスを事例とし、碑文史料に基づき既存の「ギリシア風競技」と剣闘士競技に代表される「ローマ風競技」との関係性を問う。まず、同市の見世物に集う人々の実態を確認した上で、他都市に赴く「ギリシア風競技」の競技者に対する顕彰碑文を検討し、同競技を都市間競争という地域的文脈に位置づける。そして、同競技における皇帝を主とするローマ中央との関係を示唆する要素、および剣闘士競技自体も、ローマの権威を付与する点で都市間競争に寄与していたと考える。結果として、「ギリシア風競技」と剣闘士競技は、ともに見世物として都市間競争という文脈において、ローマ中央との関係を構築する機能を共有していたことが判明し、見世物からみるギリシア都市の新たな像の一端が提示される。

In Roman Asia Minor, which has recently been the focus of many researchers, an "agonistic explosion, " which refers to the sudden increase in competitions as spectacles, occurred. In this paper, I take up this historical phenomenon in an attempt to consider spectacles in Asia Minor as a point of intersection between Greek and Rome in the regional and empire-wide context and then to clarify the actual condition of a Greek city under Roman rule. Formally, spectacles in Roman Greek cities are divided into two types, on the one hand, "Greek games, " which had been held since the Classical period, and on the other hand, "Roman games, " especially gladiatorial competitions, which had been brought from Italy. Previous studies also have distinguished their subject matter based on this categorization. So the two types of the games have been understood as separate. While "Greek games" contributed to an emphasis on Greek identity, "Roman games" were a point of cultural contact between Greek and Rome where both values were assimilated. But if we consider the common feature of spectacle as a place which people from inside and outside a community met, we should examine the two games together. Concentrating on the common element of spectacle, this article approaches the reality of spectacle in a Greek city that has previously been overlooked, by focusing on Aphrodisias, a city of southwest Asia Minor, as a case study. Firstly, I investigate people from other cities who gathered for spectacles in Aphrodisias on the basis of seat inscriptions that were discovered at buildings used for spectacles in Aphrodisias and honorific inscriptions concerning joint sacrifice accompanying the spectacles. As a result, I point out that people of neighboring cities assembled there. However, this is not the only relationship among cities that can be seen in these spectacles. Of the honorific inscriptions for "Greek games" competitors, certain ones list festivals of other cities at which the honored competitors had triumphed. Analyzing comprehensively the festivals that were listed on the inscriptions from Aphrodisias, the cities from the province of Asia, and the cities from the province of Achaia, we discover that, just as in the other cities of the province of Asia, the largest number of festivals mentioned in inscriptions from Aphrodisias are from the province of Asia, to which Aphrodisias herself belonged, but the rate of festivals of Achaia is smaller than the other cities of the province of Asia. To sum up, considering the regional context of intercity rivalry in Asia Minor and subjective nature of the involvement of the city in honoring the competitors, it becomes clear that the "Greek games" of Aphrodisias functioned as a method for inter-city competition in the respect that the honoring of outstanding competitors with inscriptions was connected with the honor of the city. In addition, the "Greek games" were related in various ways to the Roman authorities such as the emperors or the officials of the city of Rome. Generally, these have been recognized as one of the ways that Greek cities proved their loyalty to Rome through the imperial cult, but since Aphrodisias at least appealed to other cities to recognize the authority of Rome, as can be seen in its "Archive Wall, " we can also see elements in the " Greek games" that suggest a similar connection with the authority of Rome. The imperial cult by which many cities subjectively constructed a relationship with the Roman authorities was initiated by the Greeks themselves and was later practiced competitively. In fact, it was the gladiatorial games that were deeply related to the imperial cult. By the inscriptions from Aphrodisias, we can perceive how the gladiatorial games were important for the imperial cult at the city level. As I have already pointed out, the prestige of Rome contributed to inter-city competition and these popular games also served to improve the honor of the city by reinforcing the relationship with the Roman authorities. Consequently, it was precisely because the spectacles that they held included people of other communities that both the "Greek games" and " Roman games" served in common as a method for competing cities to construct a connection with the Roman authorities. This paper clarifies the picture of Greek cities that at least in the sphere of spectacles attempted to demonstrate their loyalty to Rome and use its prestige as a link to their own honor. The result of this study will undoubtedly provide help in creating a dynamic portrait of Greek cities in the Roman period as other recent studies have attempted to do.